As part of its “Drink It to Believe It” campaign, Pepsi Next has launched an “Internet Taste Test” on its Facebook page. The overall campaign is focused on driving trial and brand engagement for the new soft drink, billed as “the first cola to deliver real cola taste with 60% less sugar.” The campaign is encouraging consumers to try Pepsi Next at sampling events being held in 800 Walmart supercenters in 40 cities (the Facebook page offers a zip code-based event locator), or through the online “taste test.” Those who opt into the Facebook-hosted taste test have a chance to be among the consumers selected to be included in improvisational videos in which comedians and actors from FunnyorDie.com will do imitations of the online personas of consumers and “notable personalities” taking their first sips of Pepsi Next. The improvs will employ relevant information from the subjects’ Facebook profiles, such as their “likes” and recent experiences. After the opt-in period (April 2-19), 12 of the Funny or Die entertainers will do the improvs during a five-day shoot (using four different sound stages) in Los Angeles. The final, edited fan videos—shareable with friends—will be posted back to selected users within 24 hours and posted on the brand’s Facebook page. The Facebook page offers a demo video starring actor/comedian Rob Riggle. Riggle describes how the test works and watches his own online persona trying Pepsi Next, referencing his "likes," from skeet shooting to painting with water colors. Other videos already posted on the page feature Funny or Die entertainers doing humorous impressions of digital influencers -- including Internet mogul Gary Vaynerchuck and Internet meme “Scumbag Steve” -- taking their first sips of the cola. (Visitors to the page can also opt to watch Pepsi Next’s “Baby” TV spot.) The Internet taste test -- created by the internal PepsiCo Beverages team, digital agency The Barbarian Group and Funny or Die -- is the latest example of using social media to offer consumer-driven, personalized branded entertainment and experiences. "To launch Pepsi Next, we're focused on getting consumers to 'Drink it to Believe it' – even online, in a fun and uniquely digital way," said Shiv Singh, head of digital, PepsiCo Beverages. Consumers are also being encouraged to share their “Drink It to Believe It” experiences on Twitter, via @pepsinext.
As part of its “Drink It to Believe It” campaign, Pepsi Next has launched an “Internet Taste Test” on its Facebook page. The overall campaign is focused on driving trial and brand engagement for the new soft drink, billed as “the first cola to deliver real cola taste with 60% less sugar.” The campaign is encouraging consumers to try Pepsi Next at sampling events being held in 800 Walmart supercenters in 40 cities (the Facebook page offers a zip code-based event locator), or through the online “taste test.” Those who opt into the Facebook-hosted taste test have a chance to be among the consumers selected to be included in improvisational videos in which comedians and actors from FunnyorDie.com will do imitations of the online personas of consumers and “notable personalities” taking their first sips of Pepsi Next. The improvs will employ relevant information from the subjects’ Facebook profiles, such as their “likes” and recent experiences. After the opt-in period (April 2-19), 12 of the Funny or Die entertainers will do the improvs during a five-day shoot (using four different sound stages) in Los Angeles. The final, edited fan videos—shareable with friends—will be posted back to selected users within 24 hours and posted on the brand’s Facebook page. The Facebook page offers a demo video starring actor/comedian Rob Riggle. Riggle describes how the test works and watches his own online persona trying Pepsi Next, referencing his "likes," from skeet shooting to painting with water colors. Other videos already posted on the page feature Funny or Die entertainers doing humorous impressions of digital influencers -- including Internet mogul Gary Vaynerchuck and Internet meme “Scumbag Steve” -- taking their first sips of the cola. (Visitors to the page can also opt to watch Pepsi Next’s “Baby” TV spot.) The Internet taste test -- created by the internal PepsiCo Beverages team, digital agency The Barbarian Group and Funny or Die -- is the latest example of using social media to offer consumer-driven, personalized branded entertainment and experiences. "To launch Pepsi Next, we're focused on getting consumers to 'Drink it to Believe it' – even online, in a fun and uniquely digital way," said Shiv Singh, head of digital, PepsiCo Beverages. Consumers are also being encouraged to share their “Drink It to Believe It” experiences on Twitter, via @pepsinext.
Descriptive information about a company exists in social sites and apps, but pulling in the information to a database that serves up in local search queries on mobile and desktop will rely on technology rather than manual labor. Automation would make it far more cost-effective, according to Jeff Beard, president at Localeze, a Neustar service. People put various values on social information. Tons of useful information comes from disparate resources, social sites, and mobile apps, but Localeze doesn't pull in data from brand pages on Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and other social sites. Beard said the company focuses on getting the information from within the company. "I wouldn't rule that out, but we're really focused on getting to the source of the information," he said. Today, Localeze focuses on making business descriptions across search engines and other sites consistent, but that doesn't mean in the future the focus will not include social, Beard said. Apparently, the challenge to reconcile information across platforms still exists. So, Localeze recently formed a partnership with Locationary, a local data management company, to share local business listings. Meanwhile, a recent Local Search Usage Study from comScore, Localeze and agency 15 Miles found that the use of social network sites for local business searches rose 67% since 2010. The study found "61% of smartphone users surveyed reported conducting local searches from a device. They also indicated that the number one reason for using a mobile device for a local business search is the on-the-go necessity for fast information. Additionally, 49% of mobile and tablet users reported using apps for local business searches." So, what if Localize went from building a repository with information to one that supports descriptive information from social sites as well? Local search directories could capitalize on products, such as Google's Project Class. Technology like this has already begun to impact business, Beard said. "Five years ago the geo-proximity of businesses wasn't that relevent," he said. "As long as you could place a business in a ZIP code, search was working, but that's not the case today." Beard said an unnamed company recently patented mobile navigational technology that determines the direction and velocity the person is headed to serve up content on businesses in the physical path. By now most marketers probably have taken a good look at Google's Project Glass, the augmented reality glasses from the Google[x] group. It's unknown whether the technology -- when realized -- will use glass from Corning or 3M, but this YouTube video from Corning tells us what's possible and what's not with glass both now and in the near future. Interactive touch tables from Microsoft exist today through Surface. 3M built 10-finger multitouch glass that will go into Lenovo computers running on Windows 8. Google wants to use voice rather than touch. The glasses will likely connect to the Internet through cellular service. And it's not clear whether the eyeglasses will become a practical application or something that morphs into another product.
Now we know the real secret about social media and TV. It isn’t necessarily about “engaging” current viewers of popular TV shows. It's about keeping low-rated shows on the air. A new TVGuide.comsurvey says nearly 80% of those who use social media post comments to “keep shows on the air.” The survey didn’t go into details of what specific activity there has been for such fan and critical favorites as “Fox’s "Fringe" or NBC’s “Chuck” and “Community.” TV Guide says this activity is up from 66% a year ago. Before social media, show fans used a number of ways -- like letter writing -- to keep programming on the air. Nearly all efforts failed. One of the biggest success stories in recent years was with "Jericho," with CBS Entertainment President Nina Tassler saying the network took a chance specifically because of the activity by its hard-core fans. According to Tassler, this came with a caveat. CBS said, in so many words, that while it was giving the show another chance, hard-core fans needed to do some extra work -- word-of-mouth stuff, digitally or whatever, to gain more viewers so that the "Jericho" could be a viable business. That effort didn't work. But it was an honorable effort in any case. The TVGuide.com survey speaks volumes about social media. It’s not about making modest or strong TV shows better, but taking some loss-leaders to perhaps a better level. In essence, that is what a good marketer can do. So what does this mean? Are those TV marketers who are participating in paid media on social media missing out? Social media metrics -- like how much an ad on Facebook really brings to traditional TV viewing --can be sketchy,. When it comes to entertainment research, one just needs to follow the real concerns of viewers. That may be to vent about a possible story line, or a performer gone wrong on AMC's "The Killing" or MTV's "Jersey Shore." But a bigger reason is something more personal: giving a smaller bit of entertainment a longer life.
According to the Outbrain State of Content Marketing 2012 report, content marketing continues to be one of the rising stars of the online marketing world as brands from American Express and Proctor & Gamble to GE and General Mills use it alongside more traditional strategies to reach their target audiences. Key findings from surveyed senior-level brand marketers and agency executives in conjunction with a program that recognizes the most effective and impactful marketing and advertising communications, includes these marketing responses:
There’s nothing quite like that special moment when a video goes viral. Millions see it; millions are entertained, and the media landscape is enthralled for a while with its newest pop-culture darling. When a brand is involved in this phenomenon, it’s an unqualified, grand-slam home run -- and every marketer’s dream. The natural corollary to this line of thought is that only superb content will work in social media. Most advertisers we speak with are under this impression. Fortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. How-to videos, repurposed TV spots, drug and medical advertisements, recipe videos, and direct response commercials all consistently enjoy success in social media. In fact, one could argue that the performance-based, non-interruptive social format provides better, more tangible value than standard pre-roll. The distribution mechanism for social video is a value exchange, whereby users receive virtual goods in return for watching a video. This format puts users in control, and it generates completion rates as high as 94% for 30-second videos. But of particular interest to advertisers is the channel’s ability to generate earned media -- regardless of the content. Nothing is going to make a two-minute recipe video “go viral,” nor would the producers of such content necessarily have that expectation. But earned media is more than just sharing and free reach. According to a study we recently conducted, nearly 5% of users, on average, who watch a social video take an additional earned-media action after viewing. This means coupon and recipe downloads, store locator usage, Facebook visits, participation in contests, etc. All of this happens, by the way, after the user receives her or his virtual reward. Thus, advertisers interested in generating earned media activity for their videos need not concern themselves with creating the next viral meme. They should, however, come to the table with a clear idea of the consumers they’d like to reach, and the actions they want those consumers to take. Coupon downloads, for instance are a natural next step after watching a CPG commercial. Understanding the basic tenets of social media advertising (i.e., value exchanges, performance-based Cost-Per-Engagement (CPE) pricing, and targeting by demographic rather than by content type) can create opportunities for many brands that might not otherwise consider themselves good fits for the space. Earned media results are no longer limited to an elite group of viral video megahits. Advertisers of every stripe can benefit from social advertising; they simply have to plan for it.
Video search is a nut that needs to be cracked. And while there have been numerous attempts over the years to deliver better video search, the industry still hasn’t unearthed an ideal solution. There’s movement afoot, though. Joy Marcus, venture partner at DFJ Gotham Ventures, said during the recent Beet.TV executive retreat that she’s keeping her eye on several new audio and video recognition technology startups in Israel that may have interesting tools for video search. Others are looking to integrate social tools into video search. That includes video technology firm Digitalsmiths, which is now weaving real-time buzz into its video discovery tools. “The growing demand for video data is being driven by revolutionary new ways for which viewers search, discover, watch and interact with video content,” said Ben Weinberger, CEO of Digitalsmiths. “Consumers are increasingly looking to Twitter and other social networks when making entertainment decisions, making it important for service providers to embrace the social graph. Service providers must find seamless, integrated solutions for incorporating trends on social networks into the content discovery experience.” Integrating social buzz is becoming more common, with apps like Yap.TV and Buddy.TV also rounding up tweets and status updates on shows. There’s also an iPad program guide from Veronica Magazine in Holland, a TV listings service in that country that includes real-time buzz around shows in the guide itself. Social trending can help tie video search results to what is relevant now for viewers, Weinberger noted in a recent webinar.
Maybe I’m borrowing heavily from my partner-in-crime’s Social Media Insider column on Wednesday because my head has been stuffed all week. Not with fresh new ideas, obviously, but with, well… let’s just say it would have been a good week to buy stock in Kleenex if my usage is any indication. So, what did David Berkowitz write about? He highlighted the contrasting views of Facebook at a private Jewish girls school in Brooklyn, called Beth Rikvah. The school, it seems, was planning to fine students with Facebook accounts $100, even if they subsequently deleted them. The alternative was to be expelled from school. But there’s a flipside: the same school, at an earlier point, had used Facebook to try to raise money, asking parents to vote on Facebook so that the school could be among the lucky schools that would get a $500,000 donation from Kohl’s. To Facebook, or not to Facebook? It all depends on what the administrators say, right? Well, reading his column got me to thinking that what we’re seeing in this instance, and in so many others, is confusion between platform and purpose. Over and over, we’ve seen stereotypes emerge in digital media, in which people make sweeping judgments about a particular social publishing platform without taking into account that it’s the individual that dictates what goes on the platform, not the platform itself. A few examples:
Twitter wants feedback on how to improve the site. The company is running a five- to-10-minute multi-question survey to determine user satisfaction. It not only wants to know if and why you would recommend Twitter to a friend, family member or colleague, but also the primary motivation for using the site, and how its ad platforms -- Promoted Trends, Promoted Accounts, Promoted Tweets -- compare with others. Does Twitter delight you? Does Twitter feel human? the survey asks. An interesting conversation with Amy Shea, Brand Keys' EVP, global director of brand development, brought up this concept of brands trying to act human on social sites. Finding human connection means bringing together technology and products to make that connection, which can lead consumers to jump from Twitter, Facebook and other social sites to make a purchase. With so much talk about attribution, it seems that social networks continue to vie for credit that leads consumers to make a purchase. A study from ExactTarget suggests that 32% of U.K.-based online consumers would be more likely to buy from a company after following it on the social network. Compare this with 24% who would more likely buy after clicking the "like" button on a Facebook brand's page, and 21% who admit to signing up and responding to email marketing, or even from pin to purchase on Pinterest. When it comes to Facebook, brands don't seem to view the ad offering -- Sponsored Stories -- as a tool to connect with consumers. While some advertisers and marketers might consider the offer a connection, because the messages in the ad directly reflect consumer sentiment, a survey from Social Fresh estimates that only 55% of Facebook advertisers use the tool. All Facebook points to The 2012 Facebook Ads Report, where 347 Facebook advertisers admit that return on investment and analytics are the biggest challenges on Facebook. With Twitter's self-serve ad platform for small and mid-size businesses just kicking off, I'm sure it's a problem the site would like to do without.